There does not appear to be a clear compromise emerging anytime soon from the weeks-long public debate over whether to let new transportation technology service companies Uber Technologies Inc. and Lyft Inc. operate fully in the Houston market. And the argument just got more heated.

On April 8, the day before a public meeting to discuss the issue, multiple Houston cab and limo companies filed a joint lawsuit against Uber and Lyft in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas. The lawsuit claims Uber and Lyft are operating illegally in Houston.

“This lawsuit is clearly the desperate attempt by the same big companies who have failed consumers, drivers and the city of Houston for decades. If anyone should be filing lawsuits, it's Houston consumers — to stand up against the taxi lobby that is trying to block their options,” said Nairi Hourdajian, an Uber spokeswoman. “Uber’s ridesharing service — UberX — is operating in Houston to overwhelming demand from both riders and drivers, demand that you saw across a wide spectrum today at City Hall.”

Lyft did not respond to inquiries about the lawsuit.

Uber’s UberX service and Lyft — app services that allow people looking for transportation to request a ride from a nearby, company-approved driver — are illegal in Houston. Although these services do not comply with city ordinances for vehicles for hire, including having the city instead of the company approve the safety of the driver and vehicle, there is one loophole. The companies can operate legally if they operate their services for free, which they are doing despite some public concern.

As previously reported, the Uber and Lyft debate is complex. Part of it concerns semantics — what the city considers a “vehicle-for-hire,” for instance — part of it concerns safety and who is offering rides to consumers, and part of it concerns competition, such as if there should be a standard fare rate for rides.

To get a better handle on the situation, members of Houston’s Public Safety and Homeland Security and Transportation, Technology and Infrastructure Committees grilled two transportation experts commissioned to analyze Houston’s taxi industry as well as lobbyists for Uber and Lyft at an April 9 public meeting.

No action was taken at the meeting, and, based on the testimony, any action taken regarding these disruptive technology companies will have serious ripple effects. There are currently no proposed changes to vehicle-for-hire ordinances in Houston.

Indeed, the two transportation experts who presented taxi cab studies to the committee expressed some disagreement as to how the city should move forward with ordinance changes for UberX and Lyft.

Ray Mundy, head of the Tennessee Transportation & Logistics Foundation, advocated putting a decision regarding ridesharing services UberX and Lyft off for two years while other cities that have been more receptive to the technology determine whether the services are harmful or helpful to consumers and if they meet public safety standards. He also said he believed the entry of UberX and Lyft will severely hurt the Houston taxi market as well as poor consumers who may not have access to these services.

On the other hand, James Cooper, head of Taxi Research Partners Ltd., said he believes the city should try to get ahead of the technology curve by setting the standards for new transportation technologies before they arrive. The fact is, even if the services are deemed illegal, companies like Uber have shown that they are still willing to operate against the will of the city.

“It’s better to lead it than be ruled by it,” Cooper said, later adding, “The market is changing and developing in a way as it has not in the past. It is difficult to keep up with and impossible to regulate at the same time.”